Rainbow Honey - October 2014 Mystery Bag

Well hi!

I picked up Rainbow Honey's mystery bag this month because *mysteries* but also because I haven't gotten one in a while and I missed it. I went with the $10 mini version because *broke* and still made out like a dang bandit.

Included in this month's mini mystery bag:

Cafe Con Leche 5mL - Basically couldn't have been named anything more appropriate. Super creamy nude with gold and silver shimmer: the perfect polish for my skin tone for mannequin hands! Smooth, easy formula. 2 coats + topcoat under OttLite.

Zi 5mL - Purple jelly packed with blue, gold, magenta and silver micro glitter. It almost looks like a glass fleck, but like, a micro glass fleck, if that makes sense. A bit on the thin side color-wise, this guy built to opacity in 3 coats. The first picture is under OttLite, the second is under crappy kitchen light to show more accurate color/shimmer (both swatches are with topcoat).

All Your Base base coat 15mL - Full size! Yeah girl! I, uhhhh, very rarely wear base coat (scoff!) because of how often I change my polish, but this one apparently has pretty good reviews. I actually got the mini size of All Your Base a few months ago and HAVE used it, thank you.

L'orange Ganache nourishing lip balm .15oz - I can never have enough lip balm during the winter. This one smells like chocolate with maybe a hint of orange, but I mostly just get chocolate. And it tastes kind of sweet, which is nice, because nothing is more disappointing than a yummy smelling lip balm that tastes like nothing. :( I have it on right now, and it feels, you know, nice. My lips are happy.

Sweet November Eu de Parfum Rollerball 4mL & Shimmer Soap .5oz - I loooove sweet scents, so this couple is perfect for me. I'm glad RH includes an info card detailing the products or I would have described this scent as 'Um... sweet... there's like, vanilla and maybe, like, some caramel notes..?' Officially, Sweet November is "a warm sweet musk with notes of coconut and vanilla sugar". It makes me want to wrap up in a big, warm blanket and lay in front of a fire surrounded by Christmas lights.

Like, I HATE winter, mind, but I really love feeling cozy. This smell makes me feel very cozy.

So heck yeah, right? I'm never disappointed with these bags, especially for the price. I love how much of a variety of products are included, too. It's nice to see an October mystery thing that isn't specifically Halloween-related.

Colors by Llarowe - Ocean Water & Cult Nails - Baker Simple Nail Art

Foreword: I was once on a search for a teal jelly polish. I am no longer on that search.

The walls in my room are the color of Ocean Water (or, possibly, a touch darker and more blue) and I love it. I plan on painting a room in my house that color, every time we move, because I love it so much. Hopefully we're not going to be moving so much because I really hate painting walls.

I have a pair of sunglasses that are kind of Ocean Water teal with yellow arms. I did this manicure with those colors the other day and it was too much -- the colors look great together, but not with this design. But I liked the design, so I found a pretty nude: Cult Nails - Baker, and it worked, and I like it, all right?

I love hole reinforcements too, FYI.

For this look, I stuck the reinforcements to the top halves of my nails, making sure to wrap them completely around the nail so I could polish all the way to the sides without there being that strange angled gap between colors. I applied three coats of Ocean Water and, after letting it mostly dry, removed the labels. I then carefully applied Baker to the area of nail that didn't have Ocean Water on it (I'd say three coats here too) and then once everything way pretty much dry I put on topcoat.

Just something a little different than your typical half-moon manicure. Like, a reverse half-moon? Upside-down half-moon?

Fing'rs Striping Tape 90s-Looking Manicure

Happy Wednesday, ya'll. According to the United States Postal Service, my first Julep box is currently in transit to my house. It's the Boho Glam starter box, and neither of the colors like, blew me away online but I liked them more than the other types, so we'll go with it. I'm on the waiting list for Ipsy, too. I have a new weakness for subscription boxes.

I picked up some Fing'rs striping tape the other day and did a super simple manicure using Essie Sand Tropez and Smooth Sailing. I liked it for about eight minutes before it made me think about those pictures you see hanging up in hotels or whatever from the 90s. The flower ones, where the colors are all muted because of them being old and awful. Shudder. I have a real issue with the 90s. That horrible super-yellow cheap-looking gold with pastel turquoise and periwinkle and, like, peach. Barf city.

But anyway, now that I'm looking at the picture I don't hate it as much as I thought I did.

Please excuse my toe-looking ring finger. I have to learn not to press down using that finger, I guess. Plus it's way shinier than the other ones. I should probably cut it off for future photos so you don't have to be subjected to its awkwardness.

But, yeah. Kind of wishing I had given it a chance. Oh well. I love Smooth Sailing by the way. I don't often proclaim my love for periwinkle (after all, periwinkle?!) but this color is so lovely with its silver NO WAIT subtle turquoise and lavender shimmer.

I shall explore this striping tape deal more in the near future, I think.